Medieval Titans
by StopTalkingToMe
Summary: AU Richard Grayson-Wayne, son of the highest ranking knight in the kingdom of Gotham has been sent to investigate what appears to be a curse set on the capital town of their allied kingdom, Jump Village. In order to find the root of this curse, Richard must discover whether or not the creatures living in this bizarre kingdom can help him, or are causing it all.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: **Okay, so all of this was inspired by the cover art for this story. It is not mine, but it's so beautiful! I saw this on tumblr, and couldn't stop thinking about a possible AU until I actually wrote all of this down and posted it. The artists is gretlusky. If you like Teen Titans, you will love her posts. I posted a link to the original on my profile so you can go check her out. Okay, onto this chapter.

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The sun was rising as he sharpened his sword in his personal study. He normally would have been doing this in the extensive sparring room that was almost larger than the royal barracks. The room had been used for training for almost three generations before him, but his father had it reconstructed and expanded when he had found a small boy orphaned by an unfortunate accident.

Originally a member of a family of traveling entertainers, the boy had no great fortune or future to look forward to until a terrible accident had claimed the lives of both his mother and father in one fell swoop. With the headlining act of their traveling circus gone, the group did not have the resources to continue feeding the boy and left him in the kingdom that his parents had died in before moving on to try to find citizens with lower standards and heavier pockets. Bruce Wayne found him within a fortnight wandering the cobblestone streets and took him in as his own.

If not for the tragic events that had led him to these circumstances, one might have called him the luckiest boy in the kingdom. Sir Bruce Wayne was a man of noble birth, born to one of the richest families in the kingdom of Gotham. A rich man made richer by his lineage of knights, he was knighted by the King himself before his 25th birthday. However, such intense studies in the ways of combat and defense of the kingdom had come at a price—despite the number of maidens willing to throw themselves at him, Sir Bruce Wayne had never settled down long enough to provide himself an heir. Impressed after witnessing the boy steal a loaf of bread without the shopkeeper even knowing he had walked inside, Sir Bruce Wayne took him under his wing to guide him and develop his skills to their full potential.

Thus he had the sparring room expanded, his excessive manor restored, and obtained a contract with a serf whose family had served the Waynes before him to tutor and look after the child while he was away (Bruce had rid himself of all previous help after his own parents died and he became the sole proprietor of the entire estate). Building off of the boy's natural cunning, Bruce trained him in several forms of combat as well as the arts of stealth and scouting. Enrolling the boy in Gotham's youngest regimen before the age of ten, he advanced from Recruit to Page to Squire in just five years. While his additional training at home had by no means hurt him, no member of the King's guard could deny that the boy had natural talent. Now several years younger than any other member of his current unit, the boy was on track to become a knight before his 21st year.

Of course, he tried not to think about that as he sharpened his sword in his room. It would only further confuse him as to why he had received a royal summons to appear before the king himself. Even his father, the highest ranking knight in the kingdom—who had been called to throne room almost once every fortnight—could not devise for what purpose his son had been summoned.

His attempts at distracting himself from worries breeding in the back of his mind were only interrupted when his study door opened and a familiar hand was placed on his shoulder.

He glanced up with even a smile that looked tired from a lack of sleep the night before. "Yes Alfred?"

"Breakfast is ready Sir. It has been for nearly a half hour", the old man said gently.

"Of course, Alfred. I am sorry for my forgetfulness, it is just that I have been…"

"Distracted?" the old man offered.

"Yes. Very distracted" he decided, sheathing his sword and following his oldest friend down the stairs to the dinning room and sat down at the table with enough places for ten, but only set for two, as it had been for too many years.

As he ate with his father, it became very evident that even Sir Bruce Wayne himself did not know the exact details as to why the summons had come.

"Alfred and I will take you there in the carriage, but after that the royal guards will be the ones who escort you to see the King" he stated as he slowly dissected his crepe with a precision that made him so efficient with a sword. Conversation continued like this, with Bruce telling him every rule and detail to be followed when addressing the king (which they both already knew, but was Bruce's very convoluted way of showing that he wanted his son to succeed). After they finished eating, time seemed to slip through the prodigy's fingers as the next thing he knew he was telling his father and Alfred goodbye for who knows how long and exiting the carriage.

He steadied his hands on the hilt of his sword as he approached the throne room. It felt as though the paintings of rulers past that hung on the walls were judging his worth with every step he took. He consciously straighten his posture as he walked, trying to remain calm before the guards that escorted him. He ran all of the rules over in his head, trying to find an order in it that would reduce the thick panic growing in the back of his throat. When that didn't work, he recalled every detail of the discussion that he had had with his father that morning.

_Bow when he first enters and when he leaves, don't speak to him unless spoken, remember that while you are important to this kingdom's defense, he rules it…_etcetera, etcetera, until he was walking through open marble doors that spanned all the way to the ceiling, and suddenly he was standing in front of the throne.

"Your Highness" he said softly but as full as respect as he could before bowing.

"Ah, Sir Bruce Wayne's son. I have heard many great things of you" the elder man said through his brown goatee. The king's red robes draped down to the floor and perfectly complimented the large ruby that held the center spot on his crown. The teen bowed again for the compliment before the King made a gesture to the guards. The four guards that he had observed when entering the room all marched to the doors and in one swift motion the room had been emptied and sealed, leaving just the king and him.

He tried not to be startled by this as the king explained, "What we are about to discuss requires a certain level of privacy." He waited for the boy to nod in understanding before continuing.

"You understand that you are very unique, yes?" Again, he waited for a nod before continuing.

"The situation in which I have been presented is also very unique." There was a pause followed by more nodding. The teen worried that the king might think him mute if continued like this, but not enough to speak.

"An ally kingdom of Gotham has recently had a drought which has caused much despair and unhappiness. To make matters worse, this was followed by a freezing winter and a plague so nasty that it all but removed them from the land. These events by themselves would not be completely bizarre, tragic as them may be, but together, all within the span of a few months…"

"They suspect something from the arcane arts to be involved?"

"Exactly, my boy. As you may know, this kingdom has a much larger problem with magical beings, what with them being surrounding by the forest in which most of them dwell. And with their forces so greatly reduced from the recent catastrophe, they are in no shape to handle their current situation or even investigate why and how this has all happened. They have even gone so far as to ask for assistance. That is where you come in. I am sending you there to aid them in discovering how to remove this curse they seem to have before it destroys them completely", the king finished, reclining back down into his thrown and giving the young man time to digest all of this new information.

After a moment, he spoke. "It is an absolute honor to serve you your Highness, but might I be so bold in asking why?"

The king smiled at this. "Like I said, you are unique. While you are not as refined as your father yet, it has come to my attention that you are progressing faster than he was at your age, and you are the youngest by far in your unit, which is in itself advanced. I want to show our ally the best that I have, and I believe that you are exactly that."

Humbled, he bowed again and thanked the king profusely. The king nodded and then continued; "Now I understand that this will not be an easy task, and for that I am prepared to reward you greatly for your success. Once you have helped this kingdom and assisted in its revival, I am willing to knight you upon your arrival home."

There was more profuse thanking before the king quieted him again. "There is a carriage with supplies waiting to take you there. Do you, Richard Grayson-Wayne accept this responsibility?"

"I do your highness" Richard replied almost instantly, his voice completely sincere.

"Good" the king smiled, "I trust you will not disappoint me."

With that goodbye, two guards entered from a secondary entrance behind the throne and escorted him down a set of winding stairs to a carriage behind the castle. As Richard closed the door to the carriage behind him, he tried not to lose his composure over what he had just agreed to.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N**: Sorry that this second chapter took a while. I usually try to update once a week but sometimes stuff happens and I can't. While I don't want to give anything away, this is not exclusively a Dick Grayson/Robin fic. Other characters from the titans will become very important very soon, I promise! Okay, enough rambling, I hope you enjoy.

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Trying not to over-analyze the situation became much harder as the carriage ride lengthened. Richard tried to clear his mind as the cobblestone of his kingdom gave way to dirt paths. Though the countryside's green hill rolled into each other almost hypnotically, his mind refused to reach a state of serenity. Every time he was about to start enjoying the scenery, the back of his head would start tugging on the memory of the king's request. After what must of have been two hours, Richard gave up his position next to the carriage window and with an elongated sigh, slid to its interior to rack his memory for any and all knowledge he had of mythical creatures.

What would have the potential to create such a curse? After making a mental list of what creatures had the abilities required, he came to the frustrating conclusion that nothing could be ruled out, as no being powerful enough to nearly cause the extinction of an entire kingdom would likely work alone. Something so magically capable and malicious was likely to have minions for their manual labor. They may have even cut deals with other creatures to aid them in decimating a kingdom.

These were nothing but theories of course. And Richard could neither confirm nor deny any of them! Even though he knew that the little knowledge he had could get him nowhere, his mind continued speculating as the horses pulled him further from his home and closer to this growing nightmare. The relentless hypothesizes only stopped as the carriage pulled to a stop at a small inn as the sun set. The chauffeur assured him that they were only stopping for the night because the horses had to rest, but Richard was grateful. Perhaps some much-need rest would do him good and quiet his mind. He was happily surprised when he drifted off nearly a minute after his head hit the pillow.

The next morning was better. After eating fresh laid eggs from the inn-keeper's chicken for breakfast and the horses were retrieved from the stable, they were off again to Jump Village. Richard focused on the landscape they were passing. He watched as through the clouds, the rising sun painted streaks of color against the grey tinted countryside. After the sun had risen, the grassy hills gave way to dry flat plains. The grass growing here was tall as his waist and reminded him of the wheat and grain that grew on the farming land of his own kingdom. He tried to picture home as vividly as he could. Richard had found its climate foreboding, as even though it did not rain excessively; clouds never seemed to fully leave the sky around Gotham, as even their brightest days in the summer were framed with grey clouds. These outlying clouds especially refused to bring rain, which made it seem to him as if they had no other purpose than to look sinister. He decided to try to appreciate the sunlight in this kingdom before he traveled back to Gotham.

By noon Richard's mind began to drift back to the thoughts of the kingdom awaiting him and how it had gotten into this circumstance. He tried to keep his mind otherwise occupied. He decided to distract his mind by committing the interior of the carriage to memory. The inside was carved out of dark mahogany, and based on how far Richard could slide his feet back, he could tell that the red velvet covered seat curved back into a C shape to allow more precious carry-on luggage for the elite passengers. He wondered how many times the carriage had actually been ridden in. The interior looked almost new, the lack of even minute fraying on the corners of the seats indicated that at the very least, the deep red velvet had been replaced within the last two months. Such comfort was not foreign to him, but he definitely knew how to live without luxury.

While his father was incredibly wealthy, Bruce had taken him out to the forest and shown him how to find and live on only the essentials. Once, his father had arranged for Alfred to blindfold them both and take them as far as a carriage could go into the wilderness, then walk them a mile deeper into it before leaving them to figure out how to return home. Bruce and Richard had spent the week surviving in the woods with nothing but the clothes on their backs before slowly making their way back to Gotham. Richard always suspected that Bruce had known exactly where they were the entire time, but had continued to feign ignorance until they had both figured out 'together' how to escape the intertwining brush. He looked back on the memory with a smile. While most children at that age would have found being forced into the woods for a week absolutely terrifying, Richard thought it was a nice bonding activity.

By the time the sun was setting, they had reached the outskirts of the kingdom. He tried to memorize it all as the carriage passed. Despite the fact that it was nearing the end of spring, the fields that they passed were dying or already barren. Instead of flowing golden wheat or lively green corn sprouts, nearly everything was a nasty shade of pale yellow. The ground itself was dry and cracking around the borders of the fields from a lack of water. He could imagine that if he were to walk into the field, the crackling husks of the dead plants would sound so intense under his feet that any passerby would think he was setting fire to the ground. If this had been how the famine was before winter struck, Richard could only imagine the size that their food reserves must have been to keep any portion of the population alive.

They slowly passed hut after hut with thatched roofs. While there were many small, single family dwellings, at the end of every grouping was a larger more equipped house. These larger homes seemed to be the only ones that were lit with candles from the inside. Due to the movement still visible inside and outside a few of the huts, this lead Richard to the conclusion that many of the poorer families had used up all of their candles and kindling trying to keep warm in the winter, and now did not have any money to buy more. This was most likely due to the fact that those living in the huts were low class farmhands, who no longer had any crops to tend to after the drought.

Richard tried not to let his heart reach out too far to these people. While he very much wanted to help them, he had little to no plan as to how he would find what had done this to them, or how he himself could stop it. He sighed as he knew that failure would result in not only disappointment from his king and father, but also most likely an end to this once prosperous kingdom. He definitely felt the weight that had been placed in his shoulders, but refused to let it hold him down. He decided that he would not leave Jump Village until he had done everything he possibly could for its people, no matter how long it took.

As he resolved this, the carriage stopped abruptly in front of the castle. Made completely of stone with high walls, Richard tried not to feel small as he was escorted by two guards in light green uniforms through the main hallway and to a room with a bed large enough for two, a bookshelf that spanned across one wall, a small study desk, and a dresser. The guards informed him that in the morning, after breakfast, the king of Jump Village had requested his presence in the throne room. After this, one of the guards advised him that it would be wise to sleep as soon as possible, and then they both promptly left him alone in his new room.

The bed was positioned in the center of the wall to the right of the doorway, its frame carved out of light oak with its four posts nearly touching the ceiling. The blanket and sheets on the bed were light green and white respectively, the same as the guards' uniforms. Richard wondered if those where the colors of the kingdom's flag. This question made him realize how little he knew about this kingdom's history. He decided to rise as early as possible to read the books provided for him to try to gain as much information on the territory as possible. Perhaps they could shed more light on the deep forest that surrounded the kingdom and the creatures that lived within it.

Richard changed into underclothes provided for him inside the oak dresser, blew out the candle on top of it, and slipped quietly under the covers of the bed. As he tried to relax enough for sleep to take him, he recalled that he was going to be meeting another king in an ambiguous meeting for the second time in three days. As he tried to decide if he should feel honored or terrified, the wear of traveling finally took its toll and he drifted into unconsciousness.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N:** Just for future reference—_italicized means it's in their head, to themselves._ I hope you guys like the length of this chapter. It took me twice as long to write it than it has taken for almost any other chapter that I have ever written I think. Does that count as improvement, or am I just getting longwinded? Okay, time for the actual chapter.

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Richard woke early as planned and started scanning the bookshelf for something that would shed light on anything about this kingdom. After searching through the first row of novels, he found what appeared to be an encyclopedia.

_Perfect._

* * *

By the time someone came to wake him at sunrise, he had nearly finished the thick volume on Jump Village. Content with his research, he rose from the seat he had taken next to the oak desk and replied to the knock on his door. Someone Richard assumed by his clothes to be a servant waited outside the door. He appeared fairly young, with incredibly pale skin matched with sandy blond hair and hazel eyes. His build was lanky and slender, and the plain faded tunic and light brown fabric of his pants hung loosely from his frame.

This servant remained outside to remind him of his engagement with the king after breakfast, and then alerted him to the clothes he had been provided inside the dresser. Richard closed the door and quickly examined the contents of the dresser trying to decide what would be proper for meeting a king. He selected a light blue tunic with a white undershirt and loose trousers. They were comfortable enough and allowed for movement if the king were to ask for a display of skill.

Richard was escorted to the empty dinning hall by the servant, who explained that the hall was rarely used by the king himself, so was instead used for diplomatic guests and royal holiday feasts on occasion. Seeing as how he was the only current diplomatic guest, and the nearest occasion warranting a feast was probably months away, it seemed that Richard would be eating alone for his entire stay. The servant seated him none the less, left through an inconspicuous doorway to the side of the table, and quickly returned with a tray of warm light bread and a small serving of roasted fish.

The servant bowed but before he could quickly exit, Richard stopped him.

"If you don't mind my asking, why are you in such a hurry? I know very few are staying in the castle, and it is unlikely that anyone else is awake yet. How could you have so much work to do already today, to cause you to rush everywhere like that?"

The servant shifted uncomfortably on his feet when he met Richard's gaze before quickly focusing on the warrior's shoes, unaccustomed to the eye contact. "Well, Sir, I um..." he rung his hands as he talked. "Well, these have been trying times in the kingdom, for all of us you know, on the king too. Many of the servants got sick after the drought. Only me and a few others were able to keep healthy enough to work through the winter. Even though the plague is all but gone, very few were able to make it through and return to work in the castle. We've taken up shifts to try to ease the work on all of us, but right now, there are only two cooks in the kitchen at a time, and it's just me and a few others running about today."

Richard gave the man who could not be older than 25 a sad smile. "Well you and your friends must be doing an excellent job. From the looks I've had of the castle, I would have guessed a full staff had work here." Sure Richard hadn't exactly been given a tour of every hallway (in truth, he had only really walked down two), but the servant didn't need to know that.

The smile on the servant's face looked like one that hadn't been worn in a long time. "Thank you Sir. That means very much", he said before bowing and heading toward the door.

"What is your name?" Richard asked before he had reached the doorway. The servant looked back, surprised. This guest was incredibly kind he decided. Most preferred servants silent, only even remembered that they existed when they had something that needed done for them.

"My name is Henry, Sir."

"My name is Richard. It has been very nice meeting you Henry."

Henry smiled enough to show his teeth. "And you too, Sir Richard." He exited so promptly that he didn't see Richard smile back.

He spent the remaining time with his modest breakfast reviewing what he had learned from the volume in his room. Jump Village's flag was actually colored forest green, crimson, and gold, so he had been partially right about that. The kingdom was well known for its agriculture trade, a factor Richard suspected drove Gotham (a kingdom whose days were eternally cloudy and very often rainy) to form an alliance with it. However wonderful its variety of crops were though, Jump Village was better known for its proximity to the magic forest. While other, definitely not human beings could be found in very small groups in nearly every forest, Jump Village's surrounding forest was unique in that it seemed to be home to a miscellany of beings that ranged from Giants to Gnomes.

To say that the cultural aspect of the kingdom was altered by this was an understatement. There were local legends of Ogres eating travelers who ventured too far into their territory, Satyrs who wore long robes and head dressings to hide their hooves and horns to masquerade among the populace, and bedtime stories of Trolls who tricked disobedient children into getting lost in the forest forever. While there were some exceptions, the general consensus was that the beings from the forest ranged anywhere from mischievous to malevolent.

The people of the kingdom had a precarious peace with the creatures of the forest. Sometime in the recent past, it seems that they all came to the conclusion that if the humans stayed out of the forest, than the creatures would stay out of their kingdom. Because of this, anything wandering in the other's territory was labeled fair game. This further discouraged any exploration into the forest, which would explain the lack of information available on the details of it.

Shortly after Richard finished his breakfast, Henry returned to the dinning hall to escort him to the throne room. The walk was not long, and soon Richard found himself feeling again, small at the grandeur of a throne room. Though the doorway arch was almost as tall as the one in Gotham's castle, the doors themselves were carved out of light oak instead of marble. Henry stopped abruptly at the doorway, but Richard could see him mouth "good luck" before he bowed and briskly walked back down the hallway.

Richard took a deep breath before walking into the throne room. As he entered, he noticed the two guards standing attention at the base of the throne, as well as two more on either side of the entrance, all of them in the same forest green uniforms. Richard bowed after he approached the dark stone throne before looking up to examine the king.

The king was surprisingly thin for a ruler of a kingdom that normally based its economy on food. His golden brown hair was shoulder length, but parted away from his face by his golden crown, which had alternating jade and ruby gemstones etched all the way around it. He had a similarly crimson robe that almost touched the ground. The robe moved with him as he rose from his seat on the stone throne.

"Ah, the prodigy himself. It is a pleasure to meet you Richard." The mid-aged king wore a genuine smile.

Richard rose off of his knee. "I can assure you, the pleasure is all mine your highness."

"I hope you rested well last night. I know the carriage ride from here to Gotham can be taxing."

"I did, and the hospitality of your servant Henry especially helped me this morning."

The king paused and smiled again. "Oh? I have had little conversation with the servants, but I have come to understand that the ones still under my employ now are quite nice."

"Henry told me about the recent…decrease in the number of workers in the castle. I assume that the losses throughout the kingdom are similar, and I am sorry for your losses."

The king's lips pressed into a solemn straight line. "Yes. It has been a difficult time on my people." After a slight pause, his lips turned upward again before saying, "but that is why you are here. I have heard great thing about you Richard, and I expect nothing less" he finished with a wink.

"Absolutely your highness. You will get nothing short of my best" Richard said, bowing slightly.

The king smiled that genuine smile again. "I hoped for that. Now, since you will be serving my kingdom, I want you to be dressed accordingly." He snapped and a female servant walked in and quickly escorted Richard out of the throne room and back down another hallway until they entered what looked to be a sewing room. The servant, which he now guessed was the seamstress, then ushered him into a secondary dressing room. On the only table in the room, he found his new uniform and tried it on. He then walked up to a small elevated platform right in front of several small mirrors.

It was composed of a crimson tunic with forest green sleeves that stopped just before his elbows. The fabric of his pants was the same shade of green. He also found a recently made black leather belt with many pouches varying in size and a sheath for his sword. He slipped on equally new black leather boots that nearly went to his knees. Finally, he clasped a black hooded cloak around his neck, the interior of which was golden. It was just long enough to go past his knees. Even though he could tell that a thin layer of lightweight armor had been sewn into the fabric, it fit him almost perfectly and made every motion he made completely fluid. The seamstress then entered and busied herself with measurements before briefly adjusting his cloak. She was finally satisfied after giving him one final inspection, and then they were off again to the throne room.

The king sat up again at their arrival and gave the seamstress an approving nod before she bowed and disappeared into the hallway again.

"I am glad the uniform fits Richard. It appears my seamstress's predictions on your measurements were nearly perfect."

"They are your majesty. Might I ask why I have been so honored as to receive my own personal uniform?"

"Well, you are going to be going in much more dangerous places than any guards in this castle have likely been, and I thought it best that you be prepared—while still sporting the colors of the kingdom of course."

Richard took a moment to notice that he was practically wearing the flag (although from behind, the entire look was much more subdued because of the black cloak).

"My seamstress is already making duplicates for you, should this one be torn beyond repair", the king stated proudly.

"Thank you my liege. It is an honor to serve such a gracious and generous king."

"Wonderful! Let's get you all filled in, shall we?"

Richard was escorted with the king to his strategy room, and spent the next half hour with the king's main advisor, discussing everything they knew about the current situation (which honestly, wasn't much). The advisor had shown him a rudimentary map that they had of what the forest might look like on the inside, though it was mostly based on eyewitness accounts from terrified peasants who had entered the edges of the forest after one too many mugs of mead.

Richard, the king, and the advisor were trying to tell if they were actually holding the map upside-down when a brisk knock came at the door.

"Expecting visitors?" The king asked his advisor, before the man vigorously shook his head no and rushed to the door.

Upon opening it, he gave the guard on the other side a glare. "I specifically asked not to be disturbed. This better be important."

The guard looked winded, as if he had just sprinted all this way to tell them something. "You…asked to be…kept informed…on the…the" he said between breaths as he placed his hands on he knees, trying to breathe normally.

"Spit it out!" the advisor said impatiently, he cheeks reddening in embarrassment as the king looked skeptically at him from across the room.

"There's a prisoner!" the guard finally stated after standing back up straight.

"And…you waste my time to tell me there is a prisoner?" the advisor began to close the door.  
"Wait!" the guard shouted. With a huff, the advisor opened the door again. "You'll want to see this Sir. We caught it trespassing outside the forest. It's a Tamaranian Fairy."

* * *

**A/N: **Guess who? Just kidding. It should be noted though that the uniform Richard is wearing is not at all the one he is wearing in the cover image for this fic. I thought this one would look more knight-like and also be more useful in battle.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N:** This is the longest chapter to date, but the next one will be longer. I just got really inspired today out of the blue so I spent several hours just writing and writing. be aware though, I only spent about 10 minutes editing because I need sleep at some point. Enjoy the chapter.

*King's Guard-meaning the entirety of the kingdom's security, referred to in this chapter and later chapters as a single entity (well capitalized like so).

* * *

Richard felt the air cool as he descended down a spiraling staircase with the advisor and royal guard. While he could tell that the advisor was attempting to remain calm and collected, his hurried pace down the stairs gave him away.

"Have you encountered a Tamaranian Fairy before?" Richard asked the advisor. When the advisor ignored him, Richard turned his attention to the guard leading them quickly to the cells below the castle. "How did you subdue the Tamaranian Fairy?"

The guard looked hesitant to speak to him. "I do not mean question the ability of the King's Guard*, I only ask because from what little I have heard of the Tamaranian is that they can be quite stro—"

A sudden crash from below interrupted Richard. All three of them stopped for a brief moment. Another loud bang resonated up the staircase and shook the stones slightly. They all started down the stone stairs again, albeit much faster this time.

When they eventually reached the final landing, the guard escorted them past a large iron gate and into a long hallway with individual cells on either side. As they progressed down the hallway the doorways changed from iron gates to thick wooden doors hinged on the walls with what Richard guessed was steel. They stopped in front of a thick wooden door locked with a steel bar guarded by two men on either side. The guard that had escorted them told to stay at the entrance before quickly running back down the hallway that they had come.

"Where is he going?" Richard questioned the advisor, hoping for an answer this time.

The advisor looked tired and frenetic at the same time. "He is going to fetch someone who can actually inform us. The man's rank is so low he is basically an errand-boy."

As Richard began wondering if he should question the men guarding the door, a voice called from down the hallway.

"Advisor Alder…and you must be the young squire I have heard so much about. The son of Wayne?" The voice came from a tall man with golden brown hair, his armor indicating he was someone who had earned his place in battle. They quickly introduced themselves. Richard learned that the man's name was Sir Devon—a veritable knight.

"While I hate to cut your pleasantries short" Alder interrupted, "I believe we have pressing matters on the other side of this door. What in the hell made all that noise not twenty minutes ago?"

"There were men guarding on the inside of the cell to monitor it. We learned this morning that the Tamaranian can be quite…slippery. I wanted to take as many precautions as possible. However, it appears that one of my men became too close to the restraints. It somehow got in reach of his sword. We disarmed it, although not before it managed to rip its chain out of the wall and damage the cell", he added gesturing to a door splintering around the hinges that they had passed.

"And now you expect me to go into the same room as this thing? You are aware that I am the most valued under the king's command?" the advisor hissed.

"I assure you that the proper precautions have been taken. We underestimated its abilities earlier. It is now in the most secure cell that we have in the castle, with a guard still watching with his back against the door" the knight answered, trying to remain civil.

"Then how about you and this one here go inside", Alder gestured to Richard "and I will report back to the king with your progress. No doubt he heard the noise, and I am sure that he has started to worry about the safety of his home, hmm?"

Sir Devon sighed. "Return then Alder. Assure the king and we will handle things down here."

Taking that as dismissal, the advisor turned on his heal and briskly walked down the hallway.

"Believe it or not, he is one of the smartest men in the kingdom" the knight turned to Richard, "I wouldn't overlook his general spite otherwise."

"Is he constantly so irritated? I thought he was just frustrated by his inability to help the king through this" Richard remarked, a bit of irritation in **_his_** tone.

"I will admit that he is more moody than normal. He must be desperate though to agree to request assistance from other kingdoms. He is so used to running the kingdom smoothly that he has forgotten that we are capable of needing help."

"I know that my father does not speak of it, but he too has had times of need. From him I have learned that it is better to learn from those times than to pretend they did not happen."

"I still do not see why Alder would bring you all the way down here to see the Tamaranian" Devon said, changing the subject.

"I actually requested to see it. While it is most likely a wild goose chase, I would like to know if the Tamaranian knows of any strange activity coming from the forest" Richard stated. "Well, stranger than usual" he added.

"I don't follow you."

"Well, is to my understanding that Tamaranian Fairies are not native to anywhere**_ near_** this close to the kingdom. Do you have any idea why one would be so close to the forest's border?"

The knight just shook his head. "I hate to be the one to admit it, but we know little of what goes on inside its borders."

"The Tamaranian probably does though" Richard asserted.

"Well, I guess it's a place to start" Devon agreed, turning to the door and taking a key off his belt. He ushered them in quickly and then locked the door again behind them.

The stone room had no windows, and was lit by one torch on every wall. It had no bed or furniture of any kind. It was completely empty except for the being in the center of the room. At first, all Richard could see was a bright mop of hair. As his eyes adjusted to the darker lighting in the cell, he saw that the fiery-red hair belonged to kneeling figure sitting down on the back of its calves, its head looking at the floor. Although the bangs were short, the lengthy hair acted like a curtain, so he couldn't see any of the figure's face. Now that his eyes were adjusted, he could see the chains catching the flickering light from the torches. The hands of the figure were encased in two large metallic cylinders welded together that almost went up to the elbows. The restraints were chained to a large metallic ring emerging from the stone floor. A long chain extended from each of the three walls away from the doorway and all converged again on the hand restraints, further limiting any movement. A final set of metal links led up from the cuffs around its hands to a thick metallic brace around its neck. The chains from the walls left enough slack to move maybe one foot in any given direction, while the chain leading to the floor was short enough that the Tamaranian probably couldn't stand even if it wanted to.

"Just precautions" Devon said, noticing Richard's lingering gaze on metal reflecting the torches' light. "Like I said earlier…she's slippery".

Richard raised his eyebrows. _She?_


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N:** Hope you guys liked the last chapter! I just want to say right now that:

All of the other titans will also be introduced in this story and all of them will be crucial to the plot.

So that it would be authentic as possible, I am using actual Tamaranian phrases from the show that Starfire has said.

Okay, enjoy the chapter!

* * *

_She?_ _It would explain why they underestimated her…_

Richard heard the Tamaranian mutter something in a guttural language.

"What was that?" Devon quipped. She remained silent. "What did you say to me?" he repeated impatiently. When she didn't respond again Devon strode over to her chained figure and pulled her face up by her hair. This elicited a grunt from the Tamaranian, but she kept her eyes closed. "I will only ask you again once."

She finally opened her eyes and stared directly at the knight.

"Zalworg tobeckplizing zorgmorker!"

Richard decided that if her voice would have sounded sweet if it wasn't so full of malice.

"Sir Devon, do you even know if she speaks English?" Richard piped up.

"She knows at least some. She asked if we were with the 'Gordians' or some other thing I'm assuming from the forest when we made first contact with her. After she was subdued and one of my men informed her that she would be jailed for her crimes, she became **_very_** quiet. She hasn't spoken a single word of English since. She probably understands everything I am saying right now though."

It was then that she looked directly at Richard. It struck him most immediately that her eyes were almost unnaturally green. It was as if someone had taken the most vivid memory he had of a meadow and made it **_brighter_** without losing any of the intensity.

Richard of course let none of this show to her or the knight. _ Remain professional._

"Sir Devon, may I talk to you outside?"

* * *

"All I want is maybe half of an hour with her" Richard asked as best he could without sounding like he was pleading. Devon looked at him skeptically.

"You do realize that she hasn't said a thing to **_one_** of my guards in English since we encountered her. What makes you think she will be so willing to talk with you?"

Richard sighed. "I think that you scare her. She views you and all of your guards as active threats. While I am wearing the colors of the kingdom, I am not wearing a uniform. I am just a young man who has not said a single word, kind **_or_** invective, to her. Allow me to speak to her alone. The worst that could happen is that she does not speak."

"The worst that could happen is that she could cut your throat with your own sword" the knight stated firmly.

Richard looked Devon directly in the eye. "With all due respect to the King's Guard and the men in her cell before, I am no fool. I have trained since I was a boy under one of the most celebrated warriors and strategists in the known kingdoms. The Tamaranian will _**not**_ _**be able**_ to lay a hand on me."

* * *

Richard composed himself as the thick door locked behind him. She was in the same position as before—hair down, head hanging, eyes closed. "No guards are with me, and neither is Sir Devon" he assured as he walked closer to her. When she did not look up, he smiled. "But you already knew that, didn't you?"

That caught her attention. She slowly lifted her head and look at him through the parted hair.

"You're more clever than you let on. You hang your head and look innocent until someone crosses you. I would bet that you are quite the force to be reckoned with out of those chains."

She narrowed her eyes.

He smirked. "I will take that as a yes. It is a good thing I do not wish to cross you then" he added calmly.

She eyed him cautiously as he padded over to her vulnerable figure. Instead of yanking her or grabbing her by her hair like the other guards had though, he stopped a couple feet away from her and sat down on the floor so that he was eye-level with her. She gave him a confused look before he nodded and motioned for her to do the same. After an awkward moment to try to maneuver herself while chained, she managed to get herself sitting cross-legged like he was.

"This way we can see each other while we talk" he said almost soothingly. "My father always used to have us sit like this and talk at the end of the day so that I could tell him what I had learned. Is your father anything like that?" He threw her a piece of his personal life to reassure her. _To gain the subject's trust_ Bruce had always said. It didn't matter if it were **_true_** or not of course. Although most of Bruce's interrogations gained information through fear tactics, he had taught Richard strategies to get a subject to open up without **_completel_**y shattering their psyches. _If you want them to tell you something, you have to offer something first. Establish common ground. _

He just looked at her patiently while she furrowed her small eyebrows in confusion. "I…I do not wish to speak about my father."

"That's fine. Can I ask you about where you were before you came here?"

She laughed mockingly. He gave her a questioning look. "That is funny. "Came". You say it like I had choice in the places they take me." After a moment she added more quietly, "I did not have choice about where I was before either".

Richard saw his opening. "Was that why you were asking about the Gordians when they found you?"

"**Gordanians**" she stated firmly, her head tilting down again.

"Tell me about them."

"They are not…what is the word…"

" Word for what?"

"What you are being now"

"...talking?" he offered.

"No! Talking and being…but better! Others like it when you do it. It makes them want to be with you. Celebrate Blorthog with you, if you do it enough", she added trying to explain to him.

"Kind? Nice?"

"Yes!" she nodded enthusiastically, making the chain connecting her neck to her hands clank. "That is what I mean. They are not the 'nice'."

"Why?" Richard asked honestly.

She looked down again. "They do…things. I do not know why. I asked them many times to stop. They would not use words I could understand. Only harsh things. Call me **rutha**. I asked them many times why they would not stop. I am different now. My hands…"

They both starred at the restraints for a moment. "My hands do things they did to me."

Richard couldn't understand what she meant. He waited for her to look him in the eye before speaking. "The people here aren't like that. They won't hurt you. I will make sure of it" he promised.

"Can you…can you do that?" she asked cautiously.

"I can, but I will need you to do something so that I can make that happen."

She looked disappointed. "Oh…personal favor, yes? The Gordanians made me do these as well" she added quietly.

The way she looked at him made him hesitate. After a moment, he understood what she meant. "No! Nothing like that", he asserted.

"Oh." She said it almost like a question. He waited until he was sure she comprehended his meaning before he continued.

"Do not fight them. Do not resist them when they move you or try to talk to you or feed you. I can only promise that they will leave you alone if you leave them alone. Don't repeat what you did this morning. Multiple guards needed medical treatment." He didn't know if that last bit was true, but if a sword was drawn, it most likely was.

She looked unhappy at his proposal but slightly guilty. After a moment of thinking she spoke. "I did not wish to hurt the guards so badly. Please apologize for me. I just wanted to be…**_away_** from here."

He nodded, "I understand".

"But…do I have to talk to them if they ask me questions? While they are not like the Gordanians, the others are not…the 'nice'. I prefer the talks with you."

That made him feel a small pang of guilt. After all, he had already lied to her—what, **_twice_**?—and here she was trusting him.

"I will…I will try to work something out for us. I enjoy talking with you as well."

She smiled at him—a genuine smile. He could tell by the way the area around her eyes crinkled that her face had been accustomed to the motion, once. He smiled a genuine smile back at her as well. He didn't even need to _fake it_ _for the subject_ as Bruce would have said.

"I will have to go soon" he admitted, "but I have one last thing to ask before I do. What is your name?"

Her bright meadow-green eyes stared back at him for a moment. "In your language, it would be Star…fire."

"That is a very pretty name. It is as unique as you are." He smiled at her. "My name is much less special. I am Richard."

"I have never met another named that. It holds **_much_** of the 'special'."

He tried not to chuckle at her use of the word. They grinned at each other. After a moment he sighed and rose from the ground. "I have to go now, but tomorrow I will try to stay for longer."

She stopped smiling but nodded her head in understanding. "Tomorrow then?" she asked hopefully.

He knocked on the door for him to be let out by the guard. "Tomorrow" he agreed, and then slowly disappeared through the doorway before it was closed and was bolted shut.

She sighed to herself, looking back at her restraints. She had forgotten for what she guessed was a half-hour that she was chained in five different places…_**again.**_

* * *

**A/N: **If you are confused about the Gordanians, watch the season 5 episode "Go!". I used it for reference in writing her origin for this story, as well as her actual comic book origins.


	6. Chapter 6

The following couple days went by quickly for Richard, despite how busy he had become. After returning from his session with Starfire, he had spent almost half the afternoon convincing Sir Devon, then the Adviser, then the king _himself _that continued sessions with her would be a good idea.

"The Tamaranian destroyed an entire cell by itself!" Alder had shrieked, protesting the most out of the three men.

"He does have a point" the king had added calmly from his seat in the adviser's office. "The creature is incredibly dangerous".

Richard sighed. "St—the Tamaranian, is our only source of information so far. Try as you may to hide it," Richard pointed to the adviser "you have no idea what you are talking about when it comes to the Forest."

Alder's jaw hung open from Richard's audacity. Richard took this moment of silence to continue his argument. "The Tamaranian is the only thing in this castle that has even stepped **_near_** the Forest, let alone **_been inside it_**. She is the only thing able to provide us insight into any manner of goings-on within it. We can either take this opportunity and shed at least some light on the situation, or waste it and spend the next months looking again for another lead like this while the kingdom wilts under its own weight."

The room was silent. The adviser appeared to have gathered his jaw from the floor, and was now skeptically glaring at Richard. "And how" he asserted "are you supposed to get the Tamaranian to talk, hmm?"

"He was able to get it talking for half of an hour" Devon interjected. "None of my men could pry a word from that guttural tongue all day, but the second he walks in, it's as if she suddenly remember English" the knight added. Richard pointed a silent smile in the knight's direction.

"And what did you learn in this hour that was so important it justified risking the King's Guard?" the adviser demanded.

Richard stood quiet for a moment. The adviser continued to glare. "Exactly what I thought. This whole thing is a wild goose chase. My king we should re—"

"Gordanians" Richard interrupted.

"Excuse me?" Alder dared, turning back to Richard.

" The Gordanians. I'm assuming you've never heard of them, since they aren't in any of your encyclopedias or maps of the Forest". He waited for the adviser to try and mutter his way into a rebuttal, but when nothing came, he continued. "She was with them before the King's Guard found her. From what I've gathered, they held her for a lengthy period of time, and the experience was...less than pleasant. I didn't have time to press further, but if I had to guess, I would say that they had been running her through some kind of torture. If I had more time I have no doubt that I could get every detail."

"We **_aren't_** in charge of the goings-on in the Forest", the adviser objected. "What happens in there, however depraved, is not our responsibility. And yet here you propose that we should spend our time delineating how creatures from the middle of the Forest have decided to loosen tongues?" the adviser objected.

Richard sighed. "No at all. I am simply saying that I was able to get her to tell me that much in half of hour **_today_**. Imagine how much more I can information I can obtain if you let me continue to meet with her."

For a moment, all three men were wordless. The king finally interrupted the silence. "You shall have these sessions with the Tamaranian, but you are to come to me and Alder with new information as it becomes available to you. Understood?"

"Of course", Richard bowed, "thank you your highness".

Richard internally cringed as Starfire shifted yet again to try and find a more comfortable position on the cold stone floor. After a moment of fidgeting she settled again with her legs crossed and resting her hand restraints on the floor. He noticed her near constant movement after only the second day, at first chalking it up to potential claustrophobia—but now after nearly a fortnight he could not ignore how often she tried to reposition the metal noose around her neck or welded metal on her wrists. He would never admit it out loud, but thinking about the sores that he **_knew_** would start forming around her restraints bothered him.

Richard had never had a problem with restraining prisoners when necessary. He had never hesitated to cuff a thief to a wall or fasten tight rope around a traitor—but continually watching Starfire shift under the weigh of the chains to try and find a position to finally bring relief felt….different. He knew without a doubt that those he had helped capture and cage before were deserving of it. But with Starfire it was different. It felt…unfair somehow.

"You should stop twisting your arms like that" he cautioned, "it will make them bruise."

She sighed, stilling herself. "I know" she admitted quietly.

It was little comments like those that were going to slowly undue him if he didn't keep himself in check.

While she continued to be vague about her time with the Gordanians when they talked, a small detail would slip out of her mouth on occasion if she began thinking too hard about how phrase something. Richard never commented on it, but had compiled them in his mind to form at least a general idea of the horrors she had endured.

He felt the sudden urge to console her in anyway he could. A hug, a word of reassurance—anything to provide a sliver of comfort.

Instead, he offered her a sympathetic look before changing the subject again to the Forest.

This of course, brought him back to a more pressing problem. It became obvious to him fairly quickly into their talks that she knew nothing.

Tamaranian fairies were native to the kingdom of Tamaran—which although technically located in the Forest, was almost one thousand leagues away from the border with Jump Village. Although the Gordanians had kept her much closer to the border, she was kept under lock and key and had no way of gaining any information about the arcane activity in the area. She had a vague memory of the geography of the area, but other than that, there was nothing to report back to the king or Alder.

Richard had no idea why, but during his meetings with them, he had begun adding in snips of information he had gained about the Forest through the encyclopedias he had nearly memorized in the royal library, and say she had told him such things.

_It's because you want to keep seeing her. _Richard tried to deny it, but deep down he knew the reason was because the second Alder thought that Starfire had stopped being useful he would be pulled away. Richard would be tasked with continuing whatever other leads they may have developed, and never see her again.

He sighed at the thought. He knew that these little talks were getting him no where, but he couldn't bear to just leave her to rot in the dungeon for however long the guards deemed fit.

_This is the best lead I have_, he lied to himself again.

He nudged the conversation back into the direction of Tamaran. Again they discussed the distance, and fell the room fell silent.

"I know this may seem like a silly question" Richard started, "but I have noticed from the damage you did before that you are…well, **_strong_**. Are all Tamaranians as strong as you?"

She giggled. "We are an able people, yes."

He smiled at her before considering if he really wanted to ask the next question. After a moment, he spoke. "So if you really are as…**_able_**…as I perceive you to be, how are they still keeping you here?"

She gave him a very confused look before gesturing to her chains and then shaking them to further clarify.

"Well, you are chained obviously," he tried to explain himself, "but I looked a little closer at the first cell you were in, and well…those chains shouldn't be able to hold you. If I estimated correctly, with a little effort, you could pull them off the wall one by one."

She tilted her head in confusion. "Did they…not tell you?"

"Tell me what?" he asked honestly.

She stared at him, perplexed, before holding out the restraints that covered all the way up to her elbows. "Look" she volunteered. He squinted at the chains before getting up and taking a torch from one of the walls and bringing it back to examine the chains.

Under the new light he could see tiny inscriptions in the metal connecting her wrists. Multiple symbols were carved on the welded portion connecting her arms, what appeared to be mostly loops and swirls to Richard.

"What…" he paused, moving the torch from one angle to another to try and better see the markings.

"An enchantment. Or I think that is what it is. I am not very…**_learned_**—is that the word?—in written forms of magic. My people use strength and skill, not spells."

"Here, watch", she offered after Richard's face contorted in confusion.

She pulled on the chains, but although it was obvious that she was applying a sufficient amount of force, they remained rooted to the ground. Richard suddenly gasped.

"What is it?" she asked, letting the chain go slack again.

"Was that…here, wait", he stated before placing the torch back on the wall. "Can you do that again?" he requested after returning to his spot in front of her.

She pulled again on the chain connecting her to the ground. To his amazement, the markings in the metal glowed dimly, now visible without the light of the torch.

"Can you pull harder?" he asked, never taking his eyes off of the symbols.

Starfire took in a breath before yanking at the chains with much more effort. The symbols again began to glow a soft yellow, like the light from a candle, only this time a little brighter. It almost seemed to pulse as she added more and more force, getting brighter as she did.

"May I stop now?" she asked quietly after a few moments, ripping Richard's focus away from the markings.

"Oh, um, yes. Thank you."

They both sat back down. "Sorry I just find this very intriguing is all" he added sheepishly.

"So they…they did not tell you?"

"No they did not. Why do you ask?" he looked her directly in the eye.

"Oh, it's just…" she looked away. "I just thought…"

"Thought what?" he asked patiently.

"Well I just thought that the reason you were so comfortable conversing with me was because they had assured you I could not escape my restraints" she explained.

Richard waited until she looked him in the eyes again. "I trust you Starfire."

She smiled genuinely. "I trust you too Richard."

"Where did the Tamaranian's restraints come from?"

Alder just looked up from whatever volume he was reading. "What do you mean?"

"Where did you obtain them from? How were they manufactured? They are not regular chains. I saw the symbols" Richard added.

"Oh. Well…" Alder faded off.

"For prisoners from the Forest, we consult the royal blacksmith to help us contain them, whatever their magic may be", the king finally stated after Alder didn't speak up again.

"I wish to see him."

"Why?" the adviser quipped.

"I would like to become more familiar with the enchantment on the chain, and anymore he has knowledge of", Richard explained.

"This is not a classroom boy" Alder proclaimed. "If I had known you would spend so much time sticking your nose in books—"

"Any man with a sword can fight, but knowledge is the only thing that can truly prepare you for a battle, and the reason I have been doing so much research is to try and make up for your lack of it" Richard countered.

"Know your place, boy!" the adviser sneered at him.

"Alder!" The king barked.

The adviser slowly sank back into his chair.

"Just arrange for Richard to see him", the king ordered calmly, his eyes looking tired. "He is right that we know little about the Forest, despite our proximity" he sighed. "Any knowledge he gains could be useful. There is no harm in letting him try."

Slowly, the adviser took out a new piece of parchment and began scribbling. "I will notify him that you are will be coming tomorrow morning."

"I would like to take the Tamaranian with me" Richard stated confidently, hoping they wouldn't ask questions.

Alder narrowed his eyes. "Why?"

After watching the king's eyebrows raise questioningly as well, Richard thought on his feet. "So that way he can show me various enchantments with a live being from the Forest. I do believe that would provide more insight than if he simply showed me symbols of which I know not the meaning." Richard smiled internally at his quick response. He thanked Bruce for showing him how to lie properly.

"That…makes sense. Put it in the letter Alder, so he can prepare himself accordingly", the king ordered, rising from his chair and moving to the door. "And please, do try to get along you two. I do believe the kingdom would better benefit if my counsel was actually working together instead of bickering amongst themselves" he added before leaving the room.


End file.
